Soyuz-U from Plesetsk Site 43/4 failed to orbit a Zenit-4MKT (Fram #3) film-return Earth-resources photoreconnaissance satellite; the launch vehicle was destroyed about 95 seconds after liftoff and the would-be Kosmos 859 was lost.
- Outcome
- Failure
- Orbit
- LEO
- Low Earth orbit
- Payload to orbit
- Did not reach orbit
- Flight
- 39th
- of 714 Soyuz U flights
- Date and time
- 4 October 1976, 11:00 UTC
- Rocket
- Soyuz U
- Builder
- Progress RSC
- Launch site
- 43/4 (43R), Plesetsk Cosmodrome, Russian Federation
- Payload
- Government/Top Secret
- Launches in 1976
- 100th of 131